Like Memories
by WrittenInSilence
Summary: Snowflakes are like memories...Even if they melt away, they always leave something behind..."


It was winter.

To her, it was a white haven, where she could go out and not once feel exposed. She could remember the rest of the year and roam free with all her joyful memories. She felt safe. To her, winter was a time to hold fond memories close to her heart.

To him, it was a bitterly cold season. A time of death and mourning where all was silent. He remembered the winter day when he was cast out, left to die. He felt betrayed. To him, winter held lost memories.

The trees were stripped of all their leaves, leaving the branches bare and exposed. The wind sent her hair whipping in front of her face, though she did not shiver. Though she wore only a kimono and a thin scarf, she did not feel the cold. She merely brushed her hair away with a slender, pale hand and continued on her way. A small hand-woven basket hung on her arm, filled with seeds and bread crumbs. Her trail was marked by dainty foot prints, dark blue impressions in the pristine white snow.

Then, she began to sing. It was a soft melody, sweet and gentle. Despite the unrelenting and harsh winds, it would be clearly heard as a bell. The sunlight shone down on her as she sang, illuminating her with an ethereal glow. Her blue-green hair shone like jewels, her bright eyes warm despite the bitter weather. She was an angel, walking in the snow, ever graceful, ever sweet. She was Light.

He was a shadow, unseen, and unheard. He stood up on a tree, crimson, or blood red as his frie- teammates called it, always watching her. He flitted from one branch to another, not disturbing the fresh-fallen snow. No marks, not one sign that he had ever been there. He traveled from one branch to another to another, following her trek through the forest. Then, she stopped. He stopped too.

As he turned his normally cruel gaze onto her, his eyes softened. Blood red melted slowly into wine red, soft and gentle. His well-built body leant against the trunk of a particularly wide tree as he listened from atop a branch. Listened to the melody he knew so well, her song. In the shadows he stood, never moving, never abandoning his post. He merely stayed. Even as the sun rose above the horizon, he not once wavered. He was Dark.

The birds flocked around her. They chirped along to her song, eager to see her once more. Each day she visited, why would a dreary winter day stop her now? She continued singing as she scattered a handful of seeds. The song of the birds stopped, the time to dine was here. She giggled in delight as they skimmed around her, gobbling the seeds she brought to them.

The shadows collected around him. They concealed his presence, masking his existence. For that he was grateful. More grateful than he could ever be to his companions. Each day, he watched over her, why should today be any different? He continued watching her as the morning came. The shadows dispersed, suddenly abandoning him. He softly shifted to hide himself once more, making almost no sound. A ghost of a presence, secretly watching the angel.

Once the birds left, she was alone. Once the song stopped, they were gone. Though they could not be seen, they were with him, they were watching the angel. A smile on her face, she stood up straight and continued walking. And so, he continued following. For the rest of the day, the two walked in silence. Light and Dark together walked alone.

Near the end of the day, it started snowing again. The first flake of white slowly drifted down to the ground, gently landing on her nose. Glancing at it, she smiled and cupped it in her hands. He glanced at her curiously, his stoic demeanor slowly washing away. A snowflake landed on him too. He brushed it off but it left a small spot of wetness on his black clothes.

"Snowflakes are like memories," she said softly. So softly that his ears nearly missed it. Even then, he felt like he only imagined it. Like she never said anything. Like she just stood there quietly, staring at the little snowflake in her frail hands. It continued to snow. "They're always delicate and there are always so many of them." She picked up the snowflake on the tip of her finger and left it on her sleeve. It melted in seconds and a small spot of water could be seen. "But even if they disappear, they always leave something behind. They always mark their presence."

He stared at her. She was talking to herself, wasn't she? She couldn't have had any way to find out he was here. Bending down, she picked up a snowflake on the ground and another one drifted onto her finger. She brought the two closer up to her eyes for a comparison.

One was dark brown, ugly and dirty. It was misshaped and clogged with dirt. The other one was pure and clean. It was white, perfectly formed, and beautiful. Like a work of art. "Some are clean, some are not. But no matter what, they're still memories. Some you don't want to remember, some you want to cherish." The dark brown one melted ever so slowly. The white snowflake glittered on her hand like a star fallen to earth. "Some you want to cherish," she repeated.

"Like this one, ne oniisan?" she asked softly, glancing up to the branch. His eyes widened and he nearly panicked. His secret, kept so safely guarded, revealed! Regaining his composure, he landed on the ground. He made his way next to her. She glanced up at him, her candy red eyes boring into his blood red. He glanced down at the snowflake in her hand.

"Like snowflakes," he said gently. She smiled and let the snowflake drift to the ground. She brought her hand down to hold his. Her hand kept a gently grip on his as the two siblings walked back out of the forest, hand in hand. Dark and Light, reunited at last.

It was winter.

There was no more 'to her' or 'to him'. Now, it was to them. To them, winter was a time to reflect. A time to reflect on the life they could have had. A time to reflect on snowflakes and memories.

To them, memories are like snowflakes. And that was what reminded her that fateful day when brother and sister reunited. That was what gave him away, what enabled them to live their lives together from then on.

Memories are like snowflakes. Even if they melt away, they always leave something behind.

-

Hey, this was a kind of a 'spur of the moment' idea. It just popped up and I started writing. I'm not sure that I did any good, though. I'm kinda confused about this myself. My first thought was to get a KuwabaraYukina but I guess a brother/sister fic about Hiei and Yukina wormed its way in. I'm not entirely sure about how this went and feel free to point out any mistakes, typos, stuff like that.


End file.
